Gas-engine starter.



PATENTED MAY l1.2. 1903:

R. A. MITCHELL & L. L. LEWIS.

GAS ENGINE STARTER.

APPLIOATION FILED DBO. 2,8. 1901.

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No. 728,123. PATENTED MAY 12, 1190's.

. R. A. MITCHELL L L. L. LEWIS. GAS ENGINE STARTER.

APPLIOATION FILED DEO. 428, 1901.

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NITED STATES Patented May 12, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

REUBEN A. MITCHELL AND LESTER L. LEWIS, OF OIL CITY, PENNSYLVANIA,

ASSIGNORS OF ONESIXTEENTH TO JOHN F. DAVIS, OF OIL CITY, PENN- SYLVANIA.

GAS-ENGINE STARTER. Y

SPECIFICATION forming part f Letters Patent NO. 728,123, dated May 12, 1903.

Application filed December 28, 1901. Serial No. 87,612- (No m'odel.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern;

Beit known that we, REUBEN A. MITCHELL and LESTER L. LEWIS, citizens of the United States, residing' at Oil City, in the county of Venango and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas-Engine Starters; and we do hereby declare the following to bea full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will en- Io able others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in starting apparatus for gas-engines of that type wherein the movement of the piston is effected by means of the combustion of a gaseous vapor in the cylinder of the engine.

As is well known, in engines of the type above referred to it is necessary to impart to zo the piston of the engine an initial force which shall cause the engine to make one or two revolutions before sufficient gaseous vapor is' hand; but this was soon found to be imprac-4 ticable, for as the art enlarged and developed the size of the engines increased until they soon became too cumbersome to be started' 3 5 manually.

Various methods and means have therefore been proposed forimparting the necessary initial strokes to the pistons of the engine; and the object of this invention is therefore to 4o provide a simple and efficient means for introducing a charge of superheated steam under pressure into the engine-cylinder, so that the engine will at once start and automatically continue its functions the same as if it were first set in motion manuallyV or by other powers and mechanisms.

With this object in view our invention consists in the combination of a main engine and, generally speaking, certain novel means for introducing a charge of steam into the c vlinder of the engine, such means consisting, specifically, of a steam-generatorand its necessary adjuncts, means for supplying water to the generator, and means for controlling the passage of the superheated steam drawn from the generator to the engine-cylinder.

It further consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement'of parts, as will be hereinafter more particularlydescribed and claimed. y

Forl a full understanding of the meritsu of the invention reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings and the following description. v

The invention is susceptible to various changes in form, proportion, and'fminor details of construction without departing from the principles or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof, and to a disclosure of the invention an adaptation thereof is' shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein- .nected by any suitable means (not shown) to a source of gas-supply, and is connected, by means of the 'tube 2, to the chamber 3, Wherein is located the valve mechanism for controlling the charge 0f superheated steam introduced into said valve-chamber through the medium of the pipe 4 from the generator 5. Fluid is introduced into the generator 5 by means of any well-known and suitable form of pump, as at 6, throughthe medium of the conducting-pipe, which is connected, as at 8, to the coil 9 of the generator.

aforesaid pump 6 is operated by means'of the lever 10, which is pivoted at ll tothe plunger-rod l2of the pump. Betweenthe'point of its connection with the plunger-rod 12 and its outer end ,the lever lO is pivotally supported in the end of a depending arm inter- The l posedbetween the pump 5 and the valvechamber 3; At its extreme outer end the lever 10 is connected, as at 14, with the lower stem 15 of the exhaust-valve 1G, arranged in the chamber 3 and adapted to control the exhaust port or pipe 16a. Mounted on the upper surface of the valve 1b' in the chamber 3 is a hollow'slip stem or tube 17, preferably cylindrical in form, which when the starting mechanism is not in use and thelever 10 is in the position shown in dotted lines is normally held out of contact with the valve 18, which under such circumstances is adapted to rest upon the Harige, or rather seat, 19, formed on the interior of the valve-chamber 3 between the point of the introduction of the superheated steam to the valve-chamber through the pipe 4E and its eduction therefrom through the pipe 2. The valve 18 is held in place against any great radial movement by means of the rod 20, which has its lower end inserted in the hollow slip-stem 17 and is held at its upper end by means of the sleeve 21, which is formed in the upper portion of the casing 3. This sleeve extends some distance above the upper outer surface of the casing, as illustrated at 22, and has mounted therein a spring-valve 24: of ordinary construction to relieve pressure in chamber 3.

When it is desired to operate our mechanism, gas is introduced from any suitable source into the bottom of the generator 5, as at 23, through the medium of the pipe 245L and ignited at the burner 25. The handle or lever 10 is then reciprocated a portion of the distance it occupies in the drawings and that shown in dotted lines. Water is thus forced through the pipe 7 into the coil 9. The valves when the handle is actuated as described will not be disturbed. These coils consist of a series of nested pipes, preferably three sizes, inserted one within the other, the largest size of course being the extreme exterior pipe, the second being inserted therein, the third or smallest size being inserted within the secondsize pipe. Upon the water entering the coils 9 at S it circulates through the smallest or interior pipe until it reaches the bushing 27. Thence it returns through the passage or circular chamber 28 29 over the exterior surface of the smallest interior pipe and within the interior surface of the second pipe to the bushing at the starting-point. Thence again it returns to the extremity of the coils over the exterior surface of the second size of pipe and within the interior of the largest or outside pipe through the passage or circular chamber 30 3l and is then introduced in the form of superheated steam into the stand-pipe 4 at 32. By this employment of the piping of the generator a great heating surface or area is acquired within a limited space.

From the above description the voperation of the device will be perfectly obvious, and, briefly, it is as follows: Gas having been introduced through the pipe 24 and ignited at the burner 25, water is pumped, as before described, into the coils 9 and is then conducted in the form of superheated steam into the stand -pipe et. The valves and operating means are presumed to be occupying the relative positions shown in dotted lilies in the drawings-that is, the main valve is closed and the exhaust-valve open. When suficient pressure is attained, the lever is moved to the position shown in full lines, the main valve is moved or raised from its seat, the exhaust-passage is closed, and the charge of su perheated steam will be forced through the pipe 2 and will give the piston of the engine the necessary impetus. On again moving the vlever to the position shownin dotted lines the valve 18 will drop on its seat, thus cutting olf the superheated steam from the generator, y

and the ports 16 will be opened for exhaust, thereby relieving pressure in the cylinder in order that the gas may flow in and ignite.

As before stated, our invention is subject to and capable of various modifications without in any way or manner departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, instead of making use of the inlet and exhaust valve mechanism shown in the drawings and described in the specification We may attain the same ends by employing a three-Way cock. Indeed, experiments have proven that for some purposes the use of the three-Way cock in place of the valve mechanism above referred to is preferable, and we therefore Wish to be understood as considering the employment of this device or similar mechanisms as coming Within the scope and spirit of the invention.

Vhile we have herein shown and specifically described the construction of steam-generator proper, we wish to be understood as making no claim for the same in this application, We having led a divisional application, Serial No. 137,928, under date of January 5, 1903, covering this subject-matter.

Having now described our invention, what we claim is- 1. The combination of an explosive-engine, and means for imparting initial revolution thereto, such means comprising a generator for supplying superheated steam to the cylinder of the engine, and means for controlling the introduction of the steam from the generator to the cylinder, substantially as described.

2. The combination of an explosive-engine, and means for starting the same, said means consisting of a generator for supplying superheated steam,means for supplying fluid thereto, and a valve mechanism interposed between the generator and the engine for controlling the charge of steam conducted from the generator to the cylinder of the engine.

3. The combination of an explosive-engine and means for starting the saine, said means consisting of a generator for supplying superheated steam, means for supplying fluid thereto, a valve mechanism interposed between the engine and the generator, means for con- IOO IIO

necting the valve mechanism with the cylinder of the engine and with the generator, the construction being such that the supply ot' steam from the generator to the engine-cylinder is controlled by said valve mechanism, substantially as described.

4. The combination ot' an explosive-engine, and a starter therefor, said starter comprising in its construction a generator for supplying superheated steam, means for supplying uid thereto, a valve mechanism interposed between the generator and the engine and communicating with both, for controlling the supply of steam from the generator to the cylinder of the engine, such mechanism comprisng a valve-chamber containing a main Valve and an exhaust-valve, and means for operating said valves.

5. An explosive-engine starter, comprising in its construction a steam-generator, means for supplying fluid thereto, and means for controlling the charge of steam from the generator to the engine-cylinder, such means consisting of a valve-chamber containing a main and an exhaust Valve, and mechanism 25 on the exterior of the chamber for operating the valves, such mechanism also operating the Huid-supplying means of the. generator, lsubstantially as set forth.

6. An explosive-engine starter, comprisinggo 

